The Beginning
by OrbitZero
Summary: Paul experiences a strange phenomenon and changes the fates of the 58th. But what happens when they are tried for treason for their actions on Anvil? Animorphs/S:AaB crossover.
1. Chapter 1

This is a crossover with the book series Animorphs. I couldn't let the 58th die, and the explanation of a _sario_ rip popped into my mind(this concept is explained in this chapter for you non-animorph fans; _sario_ rips are alien concepts that are fully understood by Andalites, a race of aliens in the series. Here it is referred to as a Barlow Tear by the humans who don't understand it completely.) This will feature the Animorphs at some point. As always, I don't own anything.

The Beginning

One

"Hoo-rahhhh!"

The controls of the laser machine cannon shook roughly in my hands as I fired round after round into the incoming Chig fighters. I won't lie-it'd been difficult to make the decision to kill myself. But I was doing it for the greater good. One death in exchange for a lot more lives. It just had to be done. They had to make it back home.

Still, I can't say that knowing my somewhat selfless act could help them all get back alive made dying any easier. I was nervous, more nervous than I'd ever been in my life. But I kept firing. If they'd sent _us_ in Hammerheads, and another squadron in the APC, we might all have come out alive. Vansen and 'Phousse would have, for sure. And I would hope I would have. But everyone likes to hope that.

My name is Paul Wang. I'm a lieutenant of the United States Marine Corps, 58th Squadron. The Wildcards.

I continued screaming out, fueled by adrenaline. I knew there was one more fighter out there at least. Probably more on the way. I kept firing into space, even though I couldn't see the Chig coming.

_"Bogie ten o'clock Wang. Watch yourself," West said._

"Another one bites the dust!" Hawkes shouted.

I fired on the Chig fighter West had warned me about, taking it out easily.  
  
I shook my head. Must be my life flashing before my eyes. That's what people say happens to you before you're about to die.

How had it come down to this? Vansen and Damphousse were dead, or would be once their oxygen reserves ran up. They'd landed on Anvil, and the atmosphere wasn't breathable. McQueen was hurt badly in the explosion during the peace talks that went all wrong. I still wonder whether those talks were genuine or not, considering that we let the enemy in on the biggest and most important military operation since the inception of the war.

Would we go down in history as heroes? Or were our treasonous actions going to humiliate us forever? I wonder how life will be for Hawkes and West, being part of the squadron that spoiled the war.

_"Colonists are secure," Vansen said. "Let's get 'em home."_

"Finally," West breathed. I looked out through the canopy windows of my Hammerhead down at the APC that was towing the colonists back to safety, hoping we wouldn't encounter anymore Chigs along the way.  
  
What was with that? I don't remember any other colonists needing rescue, or escorting them in the Hammerheads...

The sudden movement and bright flare of the engines on the Chig fighter caught my eye. I took aim, and began firing, screaming still. My voice was hoarse by now. I watched as one of the lasers caught the Chig fighter's wing. I kept firing, gripping the handles of the turret tightly, even as the fighter was less than two feet away from me. It slammed into the cargo hold, and-

"..now to be sidelined because of a damned cold..."

"Get some rest, sir."

I looked around, confused. Hadn't I just been at the brink of death? That was McQueen and Ross talking. They'd just had that conversation before the peace talks went awry!

"Sir!" I blurted out, jumping to my feet. Everyone looked at me, startled by my sudden outburst. But I could still feel that adrenaline flowing. I was panting and sweating.

"...Lieutenant?" Ross said, one eyebrow raised. "You wanted to say something?"

I hadn't realized how long I'd been just standing there, staring at everybody. I guess when you're pulled back from the abyss, time's still going by faster than usual.

"I-there was-trapped in the cargo hold! Chig fighters everywhere! The colonists! We had to go out after them in the APC! The peace talks went all wrong and-!" I knew I probably sounded like a lunatic, but it was still hard to get a grip on things. It'd all been so real! I could still feel the turret shaking in my hands! The heat from the explosion on my face!

"What are you talking about, lieutenant?" Ross asked. "Take a second and spit it out right this time."

I nodded, breathing deeply and trying to calm down. That's what they always told you to do, little tricks like that. 'Breathe deeply' or 'count backwards from a hundred'. "Sir," I said, a bit calmer this time. "I'm not sure what's just happened, but I would swear to you on Joe DiMaggio's grave that I was just in an APC cargo hold, drifting through space, firing on incoming Chig fighters. We were sent out to retrieve the colonists, the ones the Chig ambassador promised to release. But something went wrong during the peace talks, which led to an attack on the colonists. Hawkes and West were the only two of us to survive. I was firing off one of the turrets at an oncoming Chig. He wrecked right into me, but now I'm back here. I've already lived this part of today, hours ago."

McQueen and Ross exchanged the weirdest look. Weird for the situation I guess. Instead of looking at me like I was crazy, they both looked like they knew exactly what I was talking about, and were worried about it. You had to be watching to catch it, because right away they went back to their normal dispositions. The others probably didn't even notice it. "Take a walk with us, lieutenant," Ross said.

I'm sure the others wanted to say something, but it was against the code of conduct. Looking back, I'm surprised I didn't get reprimanded for my own outburst. They must've known what I was talking about right away.

"Yes, sir," I replied, following McQueen and Ross out of the barracks, glancing back nervously at the others. They all wore confused expressions, and they'd probably all jump up to the door to eavesdrop the second we left.

I followed McQueen and Ross to an empty conference room, where they indicated for me to sit down in one of the cushioned chairs. "Explain to us in detail what happened to you today, lieutenant," McQueen said quietly.

"You believe me, sir?"

"That was an order," he said.

I shifted to a more comfortable position, and began explaining. "We were all listening to the peace talks. That guy from AeroTech-Wayne, I think?-he started getting real angry. The Chig ambassador asserted that Wayne knew about the Chigs. That they relayed a message to us through the AeroTech probe. He said their race originated on Earth. Basically a chunk of Earth minerals somehow made its way to their home planet, spawning them from similar amino acids or whatever that spawned us. I'm no biologist, but that was the gist of what he said. Then something went wrong. A bomb went off, or something, all we could hear was screaming.

"After that, the APC that was loaded with the colonists was attacked. The fleet that was with them was obliterated. So Commodore Ross ordered us to go out after them, even though we were put on restriction for telling the Chig on Anvil about Roundhammer. We took another APC out there, picked up the colonists, and then the Chig fleet came at us again." I glanced up at them to make sure they were still listening, and they were.

"Captain Vansen and Lieutenant Damphousse were separated from the APC, and crashed on Anvil. I had to stay in the cargo hold, because the airlock wouldn't open in time. I couldn't get back on the APC with the rest of the colonists, Lieutenant West and Hawkes. I stayed to try to fight off the Chigs. And the last one came barreling at me, I was still shooting at it. It crashed right into my position, and I found myself right back here, like everything started all over."

"Have you experienced anything strange lately?" McQueen asked. "Preceding this, of course."

I thought hard for a second. Just the usual alien killing, mostly. Except..."Yeah. Bouts of...de ja vu, I guess you would say? Except that I haven't experienced the events. Not yet. I was escorting the colonists in my Hammerhead along with the rest of the 58th. We took out the Chig fighters and headed to the Saratoga."

"What do you think, Colonel?" Ross asked. "Sound familiar?"

McQueen nodded. "Sounds like we have a Barlow Tear."


	2. Chapter 2

Wow, I was surprised to get reviews on this so quickly! I figured the SaAB section was pretty dead by now heh. Thanks for reading you guys! If anyone of either fandom(Animorphs or Space: Above and Beyond) has a question about something in the story they are unfamiliar with, feel free to ask, and I'll be happy to explain it for you. I do my best to explain it in the fic, but if you don't get it, I'll help you out. )

As always, neither Animorphs nor Space belong to me and are property of their respective creators.

The Beginning

Two

"A Barlow Tear?" I asked.

"That's the tentative name for it," Ross said. "The theory hasn't been verified just yet."

"The general idea," McQueen explained, "is that a high concentration of energy tears through the fabric of space and time, causing the individual caught in the tear to travel forward or backward through time. This is often preceded by the individual experiencing glimpses of events that their doppleganger is experiencing."

"Doppleganger?" I repeated, confused.

"Depending on how far ahead or how far back you're sent through time, there may be two of you, creating a doppleganger effect. The two simultaneously exist in the same timeframe, but one usually dies, and seems to be snapped back to an arbitrary point in time before the tear occurred. It's a fairly new concept, one that hasn't been let out to the public yet. I've seen a few marines experience it before, during the AI rebellion," McQueen said.

"So I'm not going crazy?" I asked.

"We'll find out," Ross said. "The peace talks are set to begin in twenty mikes. Which means Colonel McQueen needs to get his ass down to the infirmary for testing before heading in there."

"But what if I'm right? And something goes wrong? The colonel-" I started, trying to get McQueen out of harm's way. I knew he'd do the same for me.

"We can't call off the talks on the basis of a possibility of a tear. It isn't well documented enough to hold any water here," Ross said. "But what I can do is tighten security around the room, and have it checked for bombs." He turned to McQueen. "And keep an eye on Wayne."

"Yes, sir," McQueen responded.

"And you, Lieutenant Wang, can not go around telling everyone about your experiences," Ross continued. "Last thing we need is a bunch of white coats in here telling us the whole damn 58th are psychic again, studying up on all of you. Back to your barracks."

I sighed, feeling nervous about the upcoming talks. What if I had been caught in one of those tears? I knew I'd really been there! And they weren't going to take my word for it? It could save a lot of people's lives! But in the end, it was probably too far-fetched for the politicians, and others, to believe to call off such an important thing. Commodore Ross was right about that. "Yes, sir." I saluted, and headed out into the hall.

"So are you goin' crazy or what?" Hawkes asked when I got back to the barracks.

"You have such a way with words, Hawkes," Vansen said.

"Have you thought about taking up poetry?" West added, snickering.

"Yeah: Roses are red, shut the hell up," he said, shoving Nathan lightly before turning back to me with inquiring eyes. "Well?"

"I'm not going crazy," I replied.

"Well what was all that about with the Commodore and McQueen?" Damphousse asked. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah," I replied. _For now_, I added silently. "I'm not supposed to share it with you, though."

"Ahhh why do they always do that?" Hawkes complained. "Lock up all the interesting stuff."

"Chill out," Vansen said. "If he isn't supposed to tell, we can't make him break his orders." She paused, and then said, "Even if none of us would narc, and are all really interested, not to mention worried, about it."

I smiled. "Okay, fine. They brought up some new theory about space and time. They called it the Barlow Tear. A high concentration of energy-for instance, a Chig fighter exploding against an APC unit's weapons facilities-might cause a rip in space and time, sending the person forward or backward through time. McQueen thinks I might've experienced one, and ended up back here with all of my memories in tact."

"Well what happened?" West asked. "I mean, if you really experienced the time travel and all of that, what happened before you ended up back here?"

I scratched the back of my head, nervous again. How could I tell Vansen and Damphousse they were going to die? But I guess telling them ahead of time might give them a way to avoid it. So I went through with it, telling them about the colonists, and the attack. They all sat in silence, taking in the shocking information for a minute before talking.

"If you know the peace talks are going to go wrong, why are they still going through with it?" Damphousse asked.

"Because the Barlow Tear isn't a validated theory yet," I answered. "For all any of us knows, this could be some kind of weird space psychosis. Who knows?"

"You do, because you were there, and now you're here," Hawkes said simply. "Ain't that enough?"

I shook my head. "We'll find out once the peace talks start whether or not this is all true."

There are times in everyone's life where they really, really wish they were right about something. Well, in my case, I really, really wished I'd been wrong instead.


	3. Chapter 3

Thanks for reading everybody!

The Beginning

Three

We looked at each other with horrified expressions as the explosions sounded over the intercom. The peace talks had been attacked. Just as I'd said would happen. Because I'd already lived it all. Wayne's voice rising, the Chig's computerized translation device trying to talk over him, and then, glass breaking, the screaming, a gunshot, and an explosion. Pure chaos.

Not only all of that, but myself, Vansen, and Damphousse were all going to die if we went after the colonists in that APC.

"We have to convince Ross to let us fly out in the Hammerheads," I said. "We need two squadrons out there. The others in the APC, and us in the Hammerheads. They're more maneuverable. We can watch each other's backs."

"We can try but-" Vansen started, before being interrupted by the intercom announcement.

"58th report to the flightdeck."

"We've got to talk to him," I said, tying up my boots quickly. I went to my locker and grabbed my helmet. "Come on!" I started down the hallway quickly, leaving the others behind. The faster I got to him, the more time I had to talk to him about the mission he was about to send us out on.

"Paul, wait for us!" Vansen demanded.

"Hurry up!" I called back, stopping briefly. Once I caught sight of them filtering out of the barracks, I started down the stairs. I got down to the last floor, and saw Commodore Ross waiting for us. "Commodore Ross!" I shouted, getting his attention immediately. "Sir! You have to let us take the Hammerheads!"

"For what?" he asked, feigning ignorance. He didn't want the others to know, but I already knew he was about to ask us to commence Operation: Homeward Bound.

"For the colonists," I replied. "You're about to dispatch us on an ISSAPC unit. It won't be maneuverable enough to combat Chig fighters. We need two squadrons on this mission, or we might not come back."

"Lieutenant, under any other circumstances, I would be reprimanding you and the rest of the Wildcards right now for telling _me_ what to do, and breaching orders!" he said sternly. "But there's an APC full of innocent people out there who have been through hell that need to be secured, and I'm not going to argue with your logic. The 5-9 reserve crew will be manning the APC. The 58th is to act as escort. Move your asses!"

I couldn't help but smile. "Thank you, sir!" I darted over to my Hammerhead, nearly jumping over it with excitement. I'd never been so pumped up to go into battle before. I think it had something to do with the fact that in an alternate reality, or different timeline, they'd killed my friends, and I had the chance now to not only stop it, but to take a weird kind of revenge.

Once we were clear for take-off, we tore out of the loading bay, up to the top of the Saratoga to wait for the APC.

"58th this is five-nine. We are clear for launch. Homeward Bound is a go," came the voice of the squadron's captain over the radio.

"Roger that, five-nine," Vansen said. "Let's get those colonists back home." I watched as the APC lifted slowly from the landing platform. We flew into formation around it-Vansen at the head, Damphousse and myself at starboard, and West and Hawkes on port.

It wasn't long before the immobile APC was spotted up ahead. I watched anxiously as the reserve squadron docked on the colonists' APC. "Colonists' are boarding," the captain said. "Looks like we're going to be all right."

"They're coming home," I heard West say quietly. "She's coming home."

My LIDAR suddenly came to life as Chig fighters approached our position. "We have incoming," I said.

"Get those colonists home, five-nine," Vansen said. "Wildcards, let's do this."


	4. Chapter 4

Thanks again for the reviews! Glad it's entertaining. The song here belongs to Iron Maiden...not me. And Space: Above and Beyond/Animorphs belong to someone who isn't me as well. Thanks again for reading. I'm kind of ashamed of how short this chapter is...Hopefully I'll do better next time.

The Beginning

Three

"You know," Hawkes said, "I just ordered this other CD. I haven't got to hear it yet." Hawkes had gotten very interested in late twentieth century music since he first heard the rock song on Mars. New CDs would show up on the Saratoga at mail call every once in awhile. We'd all gotten used to hearing it in the barracks by now.

"What are you talking about, Hawkes?" West asked.

"Visual contact," Vansen reported. "Keep your heads on the fight."

"Well, let's just say I hope you guys like 'Iron Maiden'," Hawkes said simply.

"Iron who?" I asked, being answered only by the sound of drums, and then some loud guitars.

"_It's snowing outside; the rumbling sound of engines roar in the night. The mission is near; the confident men are waiting to drop from the sky."_

"Hawkes!" Vansen said angrily.

"_The blizzard goes on, but still they must flyyy!"_

"Here they come!" West cried out. I saw him fire on the first fighter at the head of the group.

"_No one should go...where eagles dareee!"_

"Hoorah!" Hawkes shouted, firing into the cluster of Chigs. "Get some!"

They returned fire on us immediately. I avoided the worst of it, nearly taking some damage to one of the wings. I fired back on them.

"Bogie ten o'clock Wang. Watch yourself," West said. I looked, and saw it oncoming.

"Another one bites the dust!" Hawkes shouted over his music as he took down another.

I fired on the Chig fighter West had warned me about, taking it out easily.

Why did this seem so familiar? Down to the exact words and everything?

"_Into the night, they fall from the sky! No one should fly, where eagles dareee!"_

"They're making a break for the APC!" Damphousse shouted.

"Don't let them take it!" Vansen demanded. The APC was already firing on the Chigs even as it was still docked and the colonists were boarding. I saw it take a few hits, but nothing it couldn't sustain.

"I'm on it," I said, heading towards the Chig fighter. I was right on its six, but couldn't risk firing. It would either collide into the APC, or I would end up firing on the colonists if the fighter was quick enough to take evasive action. It ducked under, and I followed, immediately firing on it. It exploded, and I ducked further to avoid the wreckage.

"_They make their way, but maybe too late...They've got to try to save the dayyyy!"_

I looked down at the LIDAR. The Chigs' numbers were nothing-just a handful of fighters left. None of us had taken significant damage. We were going to be okay. I looped back around the APC towards the rest of the Wildcards, firing at a Chig who was tailing one of them. It exploded, sending chunks of metal everywhere.

The last two went down after coming close to taking out one of the Hammerheads. I breathed a sigh of relief. All five of us were alive, and the APC was lifting away from the immobile cargo hold. The operation was a success.

"Colonists are secure," Vansen said. "Let's get 'em home."

"Finally," West breathed. I looked out through the canopy windows of my Hammerhead down at the APC that was towing the colonists back to safety, hoping we wouldn't encounter anymore Chigs along the way to the Saratoga.

"_They dared to go, where no one would try! They chose to fly, where eagles dareee!"_


	5. Chapter 5

Short chapter, they should lengthen a little soon. Thanks for everyone reading or reviewing.

The Beginning

Five

We docked on the Saratoga without any more attacks along the way. I felt a heavy weight lift from my shoulders as the canopy was taken up into the loading bay. I breathed a sigh of relief. The colonists were home. The Wildcards were still together. Things were almost as good as they could be, considering the circumstances. The only thing that would've made it perfect was if they would've listened to me before the peace talks. If I could've saved McQueen.

"We have to go see the colonel," I said as we exited the bay.

"Agreed," Vansen said. "We have to make sure he's okay."

"You guys..." West started, unsure of how to put it. We all knew what he was going to say, and none of us would think any less of him for saying it.

"Go see her, West," Vansen said. "McQueen would understand, and probably wants you to go to her first."

He smiled sadly. "Yeah. Just hope he's okay. Tell him that. I know I'll see him later, but...yeah." He separated from us, heading towards the APC loading bay. He'd probably stay with Kylen until the colonists were loaded into another APC to head back to Earth. At least she would be safe there, and he wouldn't have to worry about her anymore.

The rest of us were on our way to the infirmary to see McQueen. I wondered if he'd survived the blast. We'd been sent out immediately after it happened, so none of us heard any information on him, or got a chance to even say good-bye before leaving. I don't know if I could forgive myself if he'd died and none of us were there for him. He would've been for us.

The sterile, white rooms of the infirmary aren't unfamiliar to any of us. When you've been on as many runs as we have, injuries are pretty much a given. We knew our way around it, having either been in the rooms for treatment, or gone to wish each other well.

"We're looking for Colonel McQueen," Vansen said once we reached the desk.

The medic looked ready to say something, but then he looked up from his work to see the patches on our flightsuits. That's right, the 58th, McQueen's squadron. He nodded, and said, "Right down here. He's lost a lot of blood, and his leg will have to be replaced. Some minor problems with his lungs as well, from the smoke inhalation. If he's conscious at all, he may be disoriented, confused...Might not even recognize you." The medic stopped, double-checking the folder on the door before nodding. He slid his key card in the lock. "In here."

We filed in quietly. I feared for the worst after hearing McQueen had lost his leg. I saw Damphousse put a hand to her mouth as she came in, seeing the colonel hooked up to the IV and oxygen. There was still blood staining his face and hair. I put an arm around her, trying to make her feel a little better.

"Colonel?" Hawkes asked quietly. The sadness in his eyes was apparent. "How you doin'?"

"Hawkes," Vansen started softly, "I don't think he can..."

McQueen cracked open one eye, looking at us. "They come back..?" he asked weakly. It was hard to make out through the oxygen mask.

"We made it, all of us," Hawkes said. "We smacked their heads in, every one of 'em. West went off to see his girlfriend though, but he came back too."

"Good," McQueen managed to say before closing his eyes again, resting.

"We just thought you'd like to know," Hawkes continued. I don't know if he was oblivious, or just coping. He was probably the closest to McQueen. They were both InVitroes, after all. Hawkes looked up to him. "And the colonists', they're all right too. Going back to Earth. Now I guess we just gotta gear up for the big battle, huh?" McQueen didn't respond, of course, but Hawkes laughed a little, and kept talking to him.

"Come on," Vansen whispered. "Let's leave him alone." Damphousse and I nodded, and we went back out as quietly as we'd come in.


	6. Chapter 6

Thanks for reading and reviewing once again.

The Beginning

Six

About a day passed after we'd returned the colonists to the Saratoga. They were all being checked up on in that time by the medics on board for any illnesses or injuries. We'd managed to beat the rush of in patients when we went to see McQueen, I guess. West had to let Kylen go one more time as the colonists left for Earth on a guarded transport. We all did our best to keep his spirits up. He'd see her again, we knew it. She'd be safe there.

But we, on the other hand, were in a lot of trouble.

I'd pondered it the other day. What would happen to us after the war was over? We'd informed a Chig of Operation: Roundhammer when we touched down on Anvil. We didn't know it was a Chig at the time. How could we? They were always wearing body armor, concealing themselves completely. Even on Anvil, the Chigs there were wearing the armor suits. We thought it might be the last of some civilization, caught in the middle of a war it had nothing to do with. We felt bad for it.

And we confessed this to McQueen and Ross before the peace talks.

Admiral Stenner had been furious. Understandable, considering the importance of the information we'd given to the enemy. Were the peace talks a set up? Just a distraction so they could build their own forces and strike us before we got to them? Or had it been sincere, and they knew they couldn't win? Either way, they knew the plans now, and there was nothing else we could do about it.

And I really mean that, because we were going to be tried for treason, and possibly discharged. We'd already confessed to McQueen and Ross, and the Admiral knew, too. So there wasn't a whole lot of hope for us.

"We really screwed up," Hawkes said, laying on his bunk and staring up at the one above him blankly.

"We couldn't know," Vansen argued. "We had no idea what it was when we saw it."

"We should've," West said. "I mean...what else could it have been? That's what they're going to ask us in court, you know. So if we don't know our answer to that, we'd better work on it now."

"It looked so alone," Damphousse said. "And it was just bringing up the babies. I can't believe it turned out to be one of them. I thought it understood us. And thanked us. Like it really wanted peace between us."

"Yeah, well, so much for that," I said flatly. "We'll be out of the war, for sure. Remember how mad Admiral Stenner was when he first found out? That's what he'd said: that we were out of the war."

"But Ross still sent us after the colonists," West replied. "So maybe there's still some hope left that they'll ease up on our sentences for all of the good we've done in this war. I mean, they do think of us as the best around here."

"Maybe for you guys," Hawkes said. "But what about me? I ain't nothin' but a 'stupid tank' to them. They'll throw me under the bus, just you wait. They'll blame this whole thing on me, and put me away for good." He had good reason to be paranoid about that. InVitroes weren't exactly treated fairly. There was still a lot of racism leftover from the AI wars. A lot of people thought IVs were lazy, dumb, and disloyal. In a situation like this, someone might try to blame this whole thing on Hawkes, and make us look like victims of his actions.

"No way," Damphousse said. "We won't allow that to happen."

"Yeah," Vansen agreed. "You're one of us, Coop. If you go down, we all do."

"All for one, and one for all," West said with a grin. "Like the Three Musketeers. Except there are five of us."

Hawkes looked like he was concentrating really hard on something, and was just quiet for a minute. Then, he said, "What's a candy bar got to do with all of this?"

I couldn't help myself. Maybe it was the stress of the situation, but I burst out laughing at his response. West was, too. And Damphousse had a sympathetic grin on her face. Vansen just shook her head.

"What?" Hawkes asked, confused. "What's so funny?"

"The Three Musketeers," West said, still laughing, "was a novel first, Coop. Then a candy bar."

Hawkes burned red from embarrassment. He wasn't very well-read, but it's to be expected. He wasn't taught history or literature at the InVitro facility. He was taught how to kill. "How was I supposed to know," he mumbled, plainly irritated.

"It's okay," Damphousse said, trying to reassure him. That's how she was. She was always the one diffusing the tension. "Everyone makes mistakes like that sometimes."

"The point still stands," Vansen said, getting back to the grave topic at hand. "We don't let them pin this on one person. We all agreed to try to tell it. So we all take the punishment, whatever it may be."

If only we knew what was waiting for us after the court martial. Our lives were about to get a lot more hectic.


	7. Chapter 7

Thank you to everyone reading. If you're enjoying it, leave a review and let me know. Or even if you aren't, tell me what to improve on. Thanks for reading, either way. And thanks to the people who have reviewed so far.

The Beginning

Seven

"Do you swear that this testimony is the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?"

"I do," I responded, hand held up as I took the oath.

Martial court was in session. Ross was there. He'd been allowed to 'represent' us in the court. The jury was made up of a few other high-ranking officers. Admiral Stenner had been killed in the blast during the peace talks, so he wasn't present. Instead there was a different guy. I'd never heard of him before, but it wasn't like I had the memory to know the name and face of every high-ranking official in the USMC. It was a bald man, with eyes that seriously bugged me out. He just looked plain _mean_. Maybe even beyond that. Sadistic, even. His name was Admiral Victor Trent.

He was questioning each of us, one at a time. He seemed to expect us to struggle against him, but we admitted the truth easily.

"You are...?" he asked, staring me down.

"Lieutenant Paul Wang, sir. 58th Squadron, stationed on the USS Saratoga since the start of the war," I replied.

"And you admit that you were one of five marines to take part in Operation: Anvil?"

"Yes, sir." All of these questions were kind of redundant. They'd already gone over this with Vansen, Damphousse, and West. I'm sure the court got it by now that we were all there. But formalities are a big deal, I guess. Plus they needed all of our individual confessions.

"Did you encounter an alien lifeform on Anvil during your mission?"

"Yes, sir."

"Describe it for us."

I nodded, and tried my best to describe the Chig. "It was humanoid. Two legs, two arms. Pinkish skin. Gills. Large-ish head, with a protruding jaw and deep-set, small black eyes," I said.

"And despite your uncertainty as to what this alien was, you agreed to divulge highly important information to it? Information that you _knew_ was necessary to keep from the enemy at all costs to ensure the success of Operation: Roundhammer?" he asked. It was plain that he wanted us all discharged. Can't say I blame him too much, but we were considered some of the best pilots in the USMC. I was hoping that would count for something.

"Yes, sir."

"Why? Why would you tell it this information? This highly sensitive information? Much less to a lifeform which you knew nothing about?" He was going in for the kill.

"That's precisely why, sir," I responded. "We knew nothing about it. We couldn't know it was the enemy as none of us have ever seen one for ourselves-"

"All the more reason for you to keep the plans to yourself!" Trent cried.

"We thought it was innocent, and to be caught in the crossfire of-"

"It sounds like you weren't thinking very much at all, lieutenant," he accused. "If you'd been thinking, you would have kept your mouth shut. If you'd been thinking, you would've suspected _any alien life_ you came across on Anvil, especially with the celestial body's close proximity to Chig Prime." There was quiet as he let this sink in. He knew how to tug on the strings. He was like an actor, trained to build up the tension and suspense. "And yet, you all continued to tell the alien our plans. You ruined all chances for a surprise attack. You sabotaged the operation, and thus, the Earth's major offensive has failed."

"That wasn't what we intended," I argued.

"The road to hell, lieutenant, is paved with good intentions," Trent said. "No further questions."

I came down from the stand. We didn't have a chance at winning this case. Ross would be the only one to support us. McQueen would've, if he were there. I wondered how he was doing.

"Do you swear to tell the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?"

"Yeah," Hawkes responded, plainly irritated. He didn't like Trent. I can't say I did either, but knew that keeping a lid on it made me look better to the jury. Hawkes, as I said before, is like a six year old. He wears his heart on his sleeve. He took his seat at the stand.

"You're name," Trent demanded.

"Lieutenant Cooper Hawkes, 58th Squadron," he replied.

"Let the record show that Lieutenant Cooper Hawkes is an InVitro," Trent said. That got me irritated. And the others. We'd been right. He was going to use people's prejudice of InVitroes against Hawkes.

"Objection," Ross said, standing. "The lieutenant's race has no relevance in this case."

The officer acting as a judge shook his head and said, "The loyalty of InVitroes is questionable, Commodore, and is pertinent to a case of treason. Overruled."

"Damn it," West muttered.

Ross sat down, sighing quietly. Trent turned to us, and smiled an evil little smile. I, and probably the others, just glared back.

"Now, Lieutenant Hawkes, do you admit to participating in Operation: Anvil?"

"Yes, sir," Hawkes spat.

"Don't lose your temper, Hawkes," I heard Vansen whisper to herself. "Don't do it."

"And you encountered alien life there?"

"Yes, sir. It looked like Lieutenant Wang said it did. And like Lieutenant West said it did. And like Lieutenant Vansen said-" Hawkes started, getting impatient.

"Answer the questions you are being asked, in your own words, not the ones you are anticipating, lieutenant," the judge warned. "Continue."

Trent nodded. "Describe it. In your own words."

"Ugly, pink, and beady little eyes. Two legs, two arms, one head, breathed through gills like a fish," Hawkes said quickly.

"And you told it about Operation: Roundhammer?"

"Yes, sir," Hawkes confirmed.

"And why did you tell it about this highly sensitive information, lieutenant?" Trent said, almost smiling. Man, I hated that guy. Even after only a few hours of knowing him, I didn't like him at all.

"Because it deserved a chance. We thought it was innocent. We didn't know what it was," Hawkes replied.

"Are you sure that's why?" Trent asked. He hadn't asked any of us that. "Are you sure it isn't because you aren't loyal to the Marine Corps? To the United States, the country the _made_ you, Lieutenant?"

Hawkes' lip twitched at that question. "I ain't a traitor," he said. "I been fighting in this war for too long for somebody to tell me I ain't loyal."

"If this is so, please inform the court why you felt the need to commit treason?" Trent asked.

"I didn't know! None of us did, and none of us could! How were we supposed to know it was a Chig?" Hawkes said, voice rising in anger.

Trent had him right where he wanted him, and he knew it. "Were you not sentenced to serve in the Marine Corps as a punishment? A punishment for assaulting an officer of the law?"

"I-"

"Yes or no, lieutenant?"

"The situation-" Hawkes tried to explain, but Trent wouldn't let him.

"It's a yes or no question, requiring no further explanation. Did you or did you not assault an officer?" Trent demanded.

"Yes!" Hawkes cried, standing up. "But this guy was trying to kill me-!"

"Sit down, lieutenant," the judge demanded.

Hawkes did so with a pout on his face. This wasn't fair. Not at all. "Ladies and gentlemen of the presiding jury, how are we to trust that an InVitro who has shown prior criminal activities is 'loyal' to the USMC? How are we to know that he did not convince his comrades to give up the information of Operation: Roundhammer to the Chig on Anvil in order to sabotage the war efforts? I assert that Lieutenant Cooper Hawkes forced the 58th Squadron to reveal these sensitive plans to the enemy. They are all guilty of treason, clear as day, and should not be exempt from just punishments, despite their admittedly impressive war records. They can not be trusted. No further questions."


	8. Chapter 8

A bit short again...All the law-ish stuff was looked up on wikipedia and could easily have been misinterpreted. Feel free to recommend ways to make it more factually accurate. Once again, thanks for reading, and remember to review. :)

The Beginning

Chapter Eight

"We find the defendants, Captain Shane Vansen, Lieutenant Nathan West, Lieutenant Vanessa Damphousse, Lieutenant Paul Wang, and Lieutenant Cooper Hawkes to be guilty of treason against the United States Marine Corps."

I felt my heart drop down to my stomach, and the rest of the speaker's sentence faded out into nothing. Guilty? They actually thought we were trying to sabotage the war efforts?

"No!" Hawkes shouted, slamming his fist on the table. "No we aren't and you know it!"

"Calm down, lieutenant," Ross hissed. "You're only going to make it worse!"

"You are all to be discharged from the United States Marine Corps and returned to Earth," the officer acting as judge announced. "Court dismissed." He slammed a gavel down to finalize it, and our fates were sealed. After all of our hard work in this war, it was gone, just like that. All because of that one Chig. We'd go down in history as the squadron that ruined the war.

"I can't believe it," Vanessa said as the court dispersed. "That's it, we're done."

"You had a good run, marines," Ross said sadly. "You were damned fine, and it was an _honor_ to fight alongside you. I don't care what the final ruling turned out to be, I know you. I know each of you had good intentions. And I know that you wouldn't betray us. But there's nothing more I can do for you now, and for that, I'm sorry." He looked sad, like a parent whose children disappointed him. And I guess that's about what we were, too. Disappointments. I could almost hear him saying 'you had so much potential...'

"It's all my fault," Cooper said angrily. "If I wasn't a damn tank they wouldn't have decided against all of you! Damn it!"

"No!" Shane said sharply. "InVitro or Natural Born, it doesn't matter! We're all in this together, remember?"

Cooper nodded, still angry. "That guy had it out for me," he said. "What a prick."

"Agreed," Nathan said. "You could tell from the minute you got up there that he was going to use your method of birth against you. What's worse is that it worked. I can't believe our superiors could be swayed by something like that. They're supposed to be impartial to that kind of thing!"

"It was a massive fuck-up," Ross put in. "But even I will agree that the way they went about deciding had more to do with the race issues. If they would've looked at it impartially, they would've been able to see that none of you would betray us."

"What's the colonel going to think?" Cooper wondered quietly.

That made us all quiet. We'd make him look bad. Terrible. And he did so much to make InVitroes look like more than lazy cowards. Our actions probably set him back, considering that he was our commanding officer. People would read into it the wrong way, and probably think he'd ordered us to divulge the information to the Chigs.

"Come on," came a new voice. It was one of four unfamiliar officers. All captains, it appeared. "You are to gather your belongings and leave the Saratoga via ISSCV immediately."

Ross shot the captains a suspicious look. "Immediately? There's usually a holding period down in the brig to give time to make flight plans back to Earth. Who told you 'immediately'?"

"We're under orders from Admiral Trent, sir," the first captain replied.

Ross snorted.

"We get to see Colonel McQueen first," Hawkes demanded. "Or we don't leave."

"If you refuse to leave, then we'll take you down to the loading bays by force," the second captain threatened.

"Captain," Ross said. "You may be under orders from the Admiral, but you're taking this one from me as Commodore of this ship: they see Colonel McQueen, or they don't leave."

The captain hesitated, and looked at the others. Finally, one nodded, and replied, "Fine. A brief visit, but that's it. The ISSCV is waiting, so move it."

After fixing us with wrist cuffs, we were taken up to the infirmary. Commodore Ross followed.


	9. Chapter 9

Short chapter. Thanks to those reviewing! It means a lot, especially in a fandom this small and near-forgotten!

The Beginning

Nine

I never realized how uncomfortable those wrist cuffs were until I had to wear them. Ross had protested at first, but knew he was stretching it just getting us clearance to see McQueen. The Captain had insisted that we wear them, or it'd be right to the ISSCV.

McQueen was looking a little better today. The IV unit was gone, and he was sitting up in bed. The oxygen mask was on the hospital bed beside him, I guess in case he needed it. He was reading a book when we came in. There was a sadness on his normally passive and stoic face. Like I'd said-like a parent disappointed in his children.

"Colonel," Cooper started. "We're sorry. If anything, we're sorriest to you. We didn't mean for all this to happen. We just didn't know..."

"It's alright, lieutenant," McQueen replied, voice raspy. It hurt to listen to him talk.

"They've been stripped of their ranks," one of the captains put in, smiling. "No need for those formalities, colonel."

McQueen stared the captain down, eyes blazing. "You think because I'm in this hospital bed that I can't hurt you. You'd better think again, you smug son of a bitch. I know these marines. I know them well. And I know, despite whatever the court may have decided, that they would _never_ betray us." I fought a smile as the captain's face fell. It was satisfying.

"They came to say good-bye, colonel," Ross said sadly. "They're headed to Earth."

"Already?" McQueen asked, surprised. "The holding period is usually-"

"Under Admiral Trent's orders," one of the captains explained.

"Admiral Trent?"

"He took Admiral Stenner's place at the court martial, sir."

McQueen nodded.

"So I guess this is the end of the 58th," Shane said quietly. "We're sorry, colonel."

"We'd never aim to disappoint you," I put in.

"We wish things could've been different," Nathan added.

"You did what you thought was best. And you fought your hardest," McQueen said. "We can't ask anymore than that."

There was an uncomfortable silence, and Cooper was the one to break it, saying what was on all of our minds. "We're going to miss you, colonel. A lot." Each of us nodded in agreement.

"As will I, Wildcards," McQueen said.

"Let's get a move on," one of the captains demanded. "We're deviating enough from the schedule as it is."

Shane was the first to do it, but once she did, we all fell in line after her. She stood up straight, and saluted McQueen and Ross. It was a bit messy, considering the wrist cuffs, but we didn't care how we looked. "It's been an honor." We all nodded, breaking our salutes.

"Likewise," McQueen replied, saluting back. "Good luck in life. All of you."

I hated this. Hated having to leave it all behind. While you're fighting, and staring death in the face, you think you'd give anything to give it up. But no, not anything. I didn't want to go out like this. None of us did. And I didn't want to leave behind the colonel, and Ross, too. They'd both been good to us, and helped us excel from wet-behind-the-ears grunts to the once-acclaimed squadron we were before we got ourselves into this whole mess. It felt like we'd just crapped on everything they'd done for us, and spit in their faces. Enough 'sorries' couldn't possibly be said.

I had tears in my eyes as we were forced to leave the colonel. All of us did.


	10. Chapter 10

The Beginning

Ten

The four captains escorted us to the loading bay. Two of them went up to the pilot's seats up front, while the other two stayed in the cargo hold with us. We took our places on the cold steel benches, still cuffed at the wrists. So many times before, we'd sat on these benches, adrenaline rushing as we were headed into battle. But now, there was just sorrow as we headed back for Earth. You'd think we'd be happy to go back home. Not under these circumstances.

"I can't believe we're going back to Earth," Vanessa whispered.

"It did seem like it'd never happen," Nathan added. "Even though we're going back as criminals, a small part of me will be happy to see it again."

"A little," I agreed. It would be nice to see a baseball game again, or see the quiet little suburbs, busy cities. No guns and bullets. No worry of death around every corner. No bombs exploding overhead.

"Say what you want," Cooper said, "but I ain't got anything for me back there. My home is the Saratoga. And it always will be. It was the only place I was ever actually wanted."

None of us knew how to respond to that. It was the truth. Cooper was an InVitro. He had no family. He had no one on Earth to go back to. He literally had nothing but the Corps, and now he didn't even have that.

"No," Vanessa said. "You'll have us. We'll have each other."

I nodded. "No way do we just stop talking to each other. We've been through too much together."

"That's right," Shane agreed. "We'll keep in touch. We'll have to make sure to see each other sometimes. We have to face it-we have to start over."

A shudder ran through the ship suddenly, jolting us all. I started to get nervous. Had we been spotted by the enemy?

"What was that?" Nathan asked.

"We're docking," one of the captains said.

"Docking?" I asked, confused. "But we've just lifted off. It's only been, what, ten, twenty minutes?"

"We're docking," he repeated. "So get off your asses, and let's move."

"I don't like this," Vanessa said. When she had a bad feeling about something, it was a good idea to listen up. She had a very good intuition, and it'd saved us many times before. "Something's not right."

"Yeah, that was way too fast," Shane agreed.

We were pulled up to our feet one by one, and walked off of the ISSCV in a single file line. The place we were in now definitely wasn't Earth. You could just feel it. We were still in space. We climbed some stairs up to a catwalk, and were guided by the captains. Two were up front, and two were behind us. I noticed that they were holding weapons of some kind. They looked vaguely familiar, but I couldn't place it. They weren't normal guns.

"Where are we going?" I asked.

"You'll find out," one of the captains replied.

"How 'bout you tell us?" Cooper demanded.

"Just shut up and walk."

We had them outnumbered, but knew we couldn't do much wearing these cuffs. Plus they had weapons. We couldn't retaliate. We had to comply. I didn't like it. I felt nervous, and knew we were headed towards something bad.

I studied the new ship, trying to get an idea of where we were. It wasn't Chig craft. Their ships, we'd discovered first-hand, were more organic. Plus the environment was able to support us. Chigs didn't breathe oxygen like we did. It's why they wore the full body armor. This was similar to human craft, with the metallic build. The catwalks were very wide though, which was a little strange. I looked down below us on the empty loading bay. The ISSCV was the only ship docked here.

We continued walking until we reached a corridor. The door slid open, and we entered. Again, the corridors were bigger than most human ships. Not only across, but the roof was higher than normal as well. We were all put into one medium-sized room. It was pretty bare-bones; four walls, no porthole, and another door. The captain that brought up the rear stood by the door we came in through. This wasn't looking good.

"What's going on?" Shane asked. "Tell us, now!"

"You're going back to Earth," was the cryptic reply. But we were still in space. "Now come on." The captain grabbed Shane roughly by the arm, and opened the next door. The other two captains aimed their weapons at us, daring us to try to go help her.

"What do you think you're doing!" Shane cried.

"Hey, let her go!" Nathan demanded.

"What're you going to do to her?!" Cooper asked.

"Cut the noise!" one of the armed captains demanded, raising his weapon suggestively.

"You won't get away with this," Vanessa said.

"We already have. But don't worry, you'll all get a chance to go on through that door there and see what's on the other side."

With that, we all watched, helpless, as Shane was dragged through the door.


	11. Chapter 11

It's getting juicy now. (Wow what a creepy thing to say about a story!) Thanks to all of those still reading and those reviewing.

The Beginning

Eleven

We could still hear her shouts of protest as the steel door closed behind her. The screams went from defiant to terrified.

"If you hurt her I swear-!" Cooper started, enraged.

"You'll what? Charge me, and you'll be nothing but a mess of cinders," the captain taunted. "And you'll be no use to anyone then."

Suddenly, there were more screams added to Shane's as something happened on the other side of the door. There were voices-and they weren't human. Something heavy thudded to the metal floor in that room. Way too heavy to be Shane. All three of the captains exchanged looks, and someone on the other side of the door screamed, "Andalite bandits!"

All hell broke loose in a matter of seconds. I know this is going to sound very bizarre, but it's the truth. A gorilla-yes, a real live, flesh and bones _gorilla_- burst through the first door we'd come through, knocking the captain aside like a rag doll.

"Holy shit!" I heard myself scream. I jumped back against the wall. The others followed suit, eyes wide as the gorilla roared out. But that wasn't all. A huge, brown bear managed to somehow shove itself in the small room, taking out the other two captains, knocking their heads together. A full grown tiger followed it inside, and stopped at the door way, turning its eyes to us.

"It's gonna eat us!" Cooper shouted.

(Sorry, but I can't let you run off just yet.)

It was a voice in my head. Now wasn't exactly the best time to go insane, but that's what I heard. Someone else's voice was in my head.

"I'm going crazy," Nathan said. "Because I just heard a voice in my head-"

"Me, too," said the rest of us in unison.

(It was me, the tiger. Just hang tight, we're going to get you home.)

The screaming in the other room stopped, and a bizarre creature trotted out, with Shane ahead of it. It was blue, with two big eyes, and two more on the ends of stalks. It had two arms, but four legs, like a deer or a horse. It also had a very long tail with a sharp blade on the end of it. Shane's eyes were wide and there was a terror in them I'd never seen before. "Remember those lizard aliens on Pomona?" she said quietly.

We all nodded as the memory came back to us.

"They're here!" she hissed.

"Well, so is the circus, apparently," Nathan said dryly, nodding his head at the animals.

(Hey, dude, we just saved your lives, show a little respect,) came a new voice. They sounded like kids' voices.

(There'll be time to explain everything later,) said the tiger from before. (But right now, we have to make a break for it before someone finds out we're here. Follow us, if you want to stay alive.)

We exchanged looks. What do you do in a situation like this? A bunch of zoo animals just burst into the room you are being held captive in, and they start talking to you. And a blue horse-man-alien is in on it too. It takes a little adjusting to think rationally.

(We don't have a lot of time here,) said a young girl's voice. (So please, come on!) It must've been the bear, because it was waving its paw at the door.

"You ain't gonna eat us, are you?" Cooper asked.

(Don't flatter yourself, buddy,) said the second boy's voice.

(We can't make you come, but if you want to live, you're best following us,) the tiger said. With that, he trotted out into the corridor.

"They saved me from being drowned," Shane said. "I say we follow them."

"You're the captain," Nathan said with a smirk.

"Let's go," Vanessa said.

We followed the animals out the door, and into a bizarre new world.


End file.
